Kia Motors likely to invest Rs 10,300 crore in Andhra Pradesh to set up factory

Kia Motors is a minority-owned subsidiary of the Hyundai Motor Company. It is the second largest automaker in Korea.

A Kia Picanto car at the 87th International Motor Show at Palexpo in Geneva. The car could be one of the debut products of Kia Motors in India.(Reuters file photo)

Kia Motors, a minority-owned subsidiary of Korean auto major Hyundai Motor Company, is likely to set up a manufacturing facililty in Andhra Pradesh with an investment worth Rs 10,300 crore, a report said.

“The car manufacturing facility, a first for Andhra Pradesh, will involve two phases with a cumulative investment of $1.6 billion, or Rs 10,300 crore, with first phase of investment amounting to about Rs 6,000 crore,” The Economic Times quoted a person aware of the development.

The second-largest Korean carmaker is reported to have started buying land for the factory at Penukonda, a town 70 km from Anantapur. The factory would be the first automobile manufacturing facility in Andhra Pradesh and be roughly 350 km away from Chennai’s automobile hub, where most automakers including Hyundai, Renault Nissan, Mercedes Benz, BMW, Ford and Ashok Leyland produce their vehicles.

The investment is expected to be in two phases, the first phase of Rs 6,000 crore will be to lay down a factory to make 3 lakh units annually. The production facility may also work in tandem with the Hyundai production facility at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu for quicker return on investments, the report said.

Kia Motors is rumoured to come to India with its small car Picanto, which was showcased at the Geneva Motor Show last month.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd, a fully-owned subsidiary of Kia’s parent Hyundai Motor Company, is the second largest automaker in India, only behind Maruti Suzuki.